Kid Friendly Cafe Reviews

Three Little Seeds is one of those places that will delight parents and children alike.

It’s located on a (relatively) quiet strip of High Street in Thornbury and like many cafe spots in the inner north, it’s like the freaking Tardis – tiny from the outside, but could fit a small nation of children inside. Unfortunately, there’s no Matt Smith, but you take what you can get.

Three Little Seeds promotes itself as the first genuinely child-friendly (and breast-feeding friendly!) cafe in the area. Personally, I think this is probably a stretch – I could rattle off quite a few cafes that fit that bill. It does tick an awful lot of child-friendly boxes though:

Bright airy space? Tick.

Nappy change facilities for dastardly blowouts? Tick.

High chairs and pram space? Double tick - they even have cute little parking meters for prams in the wide corridor down the back (there are no scantily clad metre maids and you don’t have to pay!)

Activities for the kids? Triple tick with a flourish of Hell Yeah – a teepee (you heard me, a teepee), dressups, oodles of toys and a huge child-height table for drawing.

Child-friendly food? A slight mark followed by a dribble off the page. The food itself is really good, the chef clearly knows what he or she is doing, but there’s not much variety and certainly limited choice for fussy eaters or kids with allergies. We fronted up for lunch and Inky and Scout had the option of soup, homemade fish fingers or eggs (from the breakfast menu). Happily, my children love googs, so it was an easy sell, but for kids allergic to eggs and seafood, there was basically nothing.

There wasn’t much for adults for lunch either – the choices were either salad, soup or a small blackboard of specials. It was disappointing as the food really was excellent – the kids’ eggs were perfectly poached and I had a delicious meal of sweetcorn & ricotta hotcakes with oven-roasted tomatoes and coriander pesto & sour cream (from the breakfast menu – thank god for Melbourne’s all-day-breakfast culture!)

There was one small caveat. When the meal came, I noticed there was no sour cream on the plate. The waiter hadn’t commented when it came to the table, so I enquired as to its whereabouts. It took him 5 minutes to come back and say “We don’t have any sour cream. You can have yogurt?” I was a bit put out to tell the truth. On one hand, you have no sour cream – that’s OK, cafes run out of sh*t, but perhaps mention that to me when I’m ordering? On the other hand, there’s a SHOP not a block away – if you knew you were running out could you not have, I don’t know, popped down to the shop to buy some? I’m sure they used to do that on “My Restaurant Rules”. It’s sour cream. It’s not salmon roe or fig pate.

The cafe is only 3 weeks old, so I suspect this small hiccup was a teething issue. The service is well-intentioned, child-sympathetic and friendly, which I prefer over snooty any day, but it’s inexperienced. They haven’t quite worked out their shizzle yet, but if they do, it could be a massive hit as they have all the right ingredients for success, particularly in family-centric Thornbury. I also happen to think that parents would take feeling comfortable with their bubs and boobs over a large menu and a sour cream side anyway.

Oh, and did I mention the coffee was the BOMB. It seems un-Melburnian not to mention this. Pardon.

What was the bill? Lunch for 2 adults and 2 children + 2 coffees – $50.

All hail the gentrification of Darebin’s far-north, heralded (with little fanfare) by the likes of Lady Bower Kitchen. Or should that be shabbychicification?

Either way, Rezza needs more places like the Lady Bower. It’s located in a pocket of Reservoir (the northern side of Broadway) not exactly synonymous with funky cafes. The popular formula of kitschy, industrial decor, funky and friendly service and a basic menu with eclectic twists, has been put to good use here and is reminiscent of the cafes flooding Northcote, Thornbury and Fitzroy North.

I think the service at the LBK (can I call you that?) is a cut above many of the cafes further south, though. The staff are hip, oh sure they are, but snooty they are not. And they genuinely seem to like kids. At one point, Inky, in an Inky-flavoured ice eating frenzy, bit her tongue quite badly, and no sooner had she let out an ear piercing scream, the staff were onto her, not in a chorus of “Oh get you begone oh snotty nosed noise maker”, but with a cloth to mend her wounded pie-eating muscle. Bless.

The food. This is All-Day Breakfast Territory, people. Seriously.

It could have been that we were starving after 3 hours at Scout’s gymnastics final and would have happily eaten cardboard, but the food was very fine. I could have licked the last morsels from my plate, but you know, ahem, not a good example for the children. Or something.

I had the poached eggs on smashed avocado, seeded toast, sour cream and chilli oil. Excellent flavours and perfectly cooked eggs (firm whites and runny yolks if you must know). Husbando had the Breakfast of Champions, aptly named with poached eggs, bacon, chorizo, meatballs and rosemary-infused mushrooms. He was sweating like a champion after that number.

Cafe latte. The regular blend kind.

The menu is limited, even for adults, but the kiddies are reasonably well catered for and can choose from several items such as eggs on toast, and meatballs with turkish bread. Pretty standard fare, but if ma kiddies love it and it’s halfway healthy, then I sure as hell aint complaining. There is a change table in the bathroom. Not sure whether they had high chairs, I was too busy stuffing my face with googs to notice. Sorry about that.

The coffee is really good. They offer a single origin, but I would be hard pressed telling the difference between the bean blend and the single origin. If you are a single origin evangelist, though, we can still be friends. We polished the lunch off with some DIVINE rhubarb cupcakes. F*ck me, they were good (sorry kiddies).

The Lady Bower Kitchen was a tops place to spend a stress-free lunch, as much as that is possible with kids. I would have liked more variety in the menu, but it’s a small criticism. And for it to be less popular so we don’t have to wait for a table, but hey, it’s not all about me.

What was the bill? Lunch for 2 adults and 2 children + 3 coffees – $65 [cash only].

A few years ago, Birdie Num Nums was the word in my mother’s group. We were Birdie Num Nums junkies, all of us.

Caffe lattes by the bea.. ahem, sand. Pit.

And why not? It was one of the first cafes in the northern suburbs to savvy-up to the marketing potential of being kid-friendly. Parents from all corners of Melbourne flocked there, like swans to a duck-dive. These days it is still popular, but not as cloyingly-so.

Birdie Num Nums is located in Carlton North in one of the many single-fronted terraces that make Melbourne so unique. It feels like you’re stepping into a piece of history. Until you realise you’ve had your child’s boogers on your shoulder all morning.

This place is an institution. It has a large covered courtyard out the back with a sandpit (stunningly cat-poo free) and plenty of room to run around. Space for the kids to move about as well. The coffee is good, the service pleasant and most importantly, the wait staff are rugrat friendly.

The menu is a pretty standard affair but it’s tasty and universally loved. There is a range of egg dishes for breakfast and a large selection of lunch options, such as open melts with chips and salad ($14), tofu and chicken burgers ($15-$16) and salads ($15-$17). There’s not much culinary innovation here but they are certainly crowd pleasers. And really, who gives a crap when you can suck on decent coffee with your kids wrapped knee-deep in sand? You don’t come here for the food, but for the break.

Ye traditionale kids menu reigns supreme – chicken nuggets with chips, fish and chips, pasta, pikelets, fruit salad etc. etc.. Nothing exciting, but it’s reasonably varied. After my whinge last week about the unoriginal “blah blah and chips” on many a kid’s menu, I didn’t order anything for Inky from it (CAN SOMEONE YELL FOOD SNOB? YES. THERE IT IS). She shared my House Made Corn bread with avocado salsa, bacon, rocket and poached eggs ($16). Freaking YUM can I tell you. Problem is, Inky loves eggs. You order an egg dish for YOURSELF and she’s hitting you up for every morsel until you realise you actually haven’t eaten any damn egg.

Cor, this kid is part-yolk, I tell ya.

There has been a definite shift in the number of cafes in Melbourne that have gone kid-friendly. I won’t say dime-a-dozen, but go ask Hey Bambini about it. There’s been some serious wising up in these parts and I’m LOVING it. Birdie Num Nums though, it’s one of the first, and in my opinion, still one of the best.

Big wooden tables are a feature of the space. As is the babycino set and fish-bowl centrepieces (not kid-friendly, but v. cool)

I was impressed with Fu Manchu for a kid-friendly cafe destination.

The newly opened cafe/restaurant on the corner of Gilbert and Miller streets in Preston, breathes life into a strip that has suffered from ghost-townedness over the past few years. It’s slowly getting better, with some terrific little shops and cafes opening up and this is one of the better ones. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and is marketed as “Vietnamese” cuisine, but I’d say it was more asian fusion.

It is huge and decorated in a way that you’d expect from this area – eclectic and slightly industrial with nods to the very asian Christopher Lee and the legend that is Fu Manchu. As the space is so large, it can accommodate little kids “on the explore” while their parents mainline the wonderful coffee they are churning out.

The service is terrific, but let me talk about the kid’s menu for a moment. I get really peevish with cafes that decide that kids will only eat crap. When we go to a nice restaurant with the kids (which happens, ahem, rarely) there is often delicious food options for the adults, and then a tiny menu of fish and chips, chicken and chips or pizza and chips for the kids. My kids like good food. They are reasonably adventurous and whilst they probably wouldn’t order a spicy curry, they can do better than a blah blah and chips. Fu Manchu has a really lovely kids menu that acknowledges that little tackers have more conservative tastes, but it’s still interesting (if a little small). We were there for breakfast so there was the option of berry pancakes – served with berry compote, crushed nuts and ice cream, a “Baby Bennie” – poached egg on muffin with ham and hollandaise and scrambled eggs on toast and avocado.

Last time I looked I was an adult, so I ordered from the main menu. Inky and I split the sweet corn and zucchini fritters – 2 generous fritters served with crispy bacon, avocado salsa, spinach and chilli jam. It’s the kind of food I love for breakfast. What I most love about about Fu Manchu’s breakfast menu is it’s leanings toward Asia – okonomiyaki pancakes, rice congee, asian mushrooms with sourdough and fetta, a big breakfast with japanese tofu. It’s brilliant. A bit different. And it’s all served with a congenial smile and no eyelids batted when your 2 year old unscrews the seat of a stool and ends up looking like a grease monkey.

The only problem I have with the place is that the highchairs are stored right next to the toilet. A definite no-no for me. But everything else was excellent.

What was the bill? Breakfast for 1 adult and 1 child + 2 coffees – $25.

This post is not sponsored. Not enough money in the world could cover me to eat here the number of times I actually do. I would eat them out of house, home and kitchen garden.

Dukkah Eggs

It’s no secret that I love the hell out of CERES. For kids and adults alike it’s the absolute bomb. And I mean that in a non-explosive, quietly contented way.

CERES occupies a 10 acre block in Brunswick East between Merri Creek and Nicholson Street. The cafe operates under organic and environmental principles and uses local (or its own) produce, 80% of which is organic. It is a sprawling arc of tables and chairs, from the sheltered balcony around the kitchen, to the 10 or so tables under a massive marquee, and the mosaiced tables out in the elements.

I usually go the Dukkah Eggs, being a self-confessed Dukkaholic. CERES always does the eggs the way I like them – hard whites and runny yolks. The Dukkah Eggs come poached on toasted homemade pumpkin bread spread with white-bean hummus, on a bed of spinach and generously sprinkled with dukkah. There is a side of tomato salsa which provides the well-needed acid for the dish. It is divine.

Lanterns next to the sandpit

Other unique offerings for breakfast or brunch are the Indonesian Eggs – fried eggs on rice, with greens, a spicy sambal, coriander, mint, and peanuts – and Toasted Wattleseed Muesli with poached rhubarb or whatever fruit is in season.

There is no kids menu per se, but it’s fairly accessible for children – they will LOVE the sausage rolls and there is always the simple option of toast with preserves to keep them pumped.

The coffee is brilliant. Service can be hit and miss. The staff are well-intentioned but can be a bit, ahem, vague and on weekends it can be slow (CERES gets very packed very quickly on weekends) and as it’s counter service, the queue can get long.

Yurt(like apparatus)

The best part about CERES is that, on a nice day, whilst you’re hoeing into your food and coffee (or organic wine/beer depending on what kind of day you’re having) curled up in the sunshine with today’s paper, the kids can roam free-range in either the sandpit next to the outdoor tables, in and around the yurt (or something that looks like a yurt) or climb up the tree-house. Yep. A tree house. The slope to the treehouse is rather steep, so kids probably need to be about 4 before they can navigate it without you. The sandpit, on the other hand, is close to the tables.

I could happily spend the best part of a day here. A short walk from the cafe there are chooks and a fabulous plant nursery, and on Wednesday morning, there is an organic fruit and vegetable market. It’s not a posh cafe and they’ve only recently forked out for flushable loos but this is a family-geared, sometimes dusty, but ultimately beautiful oasis in the middle of the inner suburbs. Check it. Come on, they have a yurt.

How kid-friendly is it? 9.5/10. No kids menu, but there are highchairs, a unique playground and space aplenty to run around in (go hard, kids, go hard!). Very young kids need to be supervised up on the hill. Unless you’re Inky of course, and prefer to crack a Bear Grylls and fend for yourself. Credit cards accepted which is a relief as it can be quite a walk from the car park to the cafe.

* All reviews are the opinion of Melbourne Mum, and are not sponsored.

Bring your Hangover in a Paint Pot and add it to the Walls

Grafete is located in an unlikely pocket of Northcote, on Gladstone Street, opposite the Foodworks near St. George’s Road. Sounds romantic, right? The cafe itself is in a converted printing shop and the walls look like a psychadelic rainbow has vomited all over it. I guess it’s what they call regurgitate industrial. Whatever it is, it works.

If you are looking for a kid-friendly spot, this is IT. They have a kids menu. They have highchairs. They bring out crayons and colouring-in books to entertain the children WITHOUT EVEN BEING ASKED while you scoff crispy bacon and achieve Brainiac status on The Age Quiz. Um yeah, it’s good.

The food won’t set any creativity or adventure hearts on fire, but it’s damn tasty and the serves are generous. There are standard bistro-type dishes for lunch (Beef Burger, Chicken Parma, a variety of Foccacias and Calamari Salad to name a few) and a decent breakfast menu with regulars including Eggs Benedict. Their hand-cut hot chips are EXCELLENT. Coffee is good but I don’t think it’s possible to open a breakfast/brunch place in Northcote/Brunswick and NOT have good coffee. I think there may be local by-laws against it.

Just in case your mama-chari gets nicked on Blyth Street.

The wait staff bend over backwards to help you out. They genuinely seem to love having kids eat there. AND there is a little covered al fresco area at the side of the place for lingering Summer lunches. I’ve never seen it occupied as it’s been colder than a nun’s tittie here on the north side, but bring it Summer. Bring that shit right on.

It’s not the most obvious place for a relaxed breakfast or lunch but Melbourne Mum and the Hungry Ferrets love it! And hell, there’s a bike on the WALL. It doesn’t get much better, or more Northcote, than that.

What was the bill? Lunch for 4 + coffee for 2 (and mainlined babycinos for Inky) – $60, pretty standard for this area.

Where is it? Grafete, 126 Gladstone Ave, Northcote (it’s super new, so no website yet, but they do have a Facebook page)

How kid-friendly is it? 9.5/10. Kids menu, highchairs, amusements, lots of space to spread out. Credit cards accepted. It almost got a 10/10 for kid-friendliness but I think to get a perfect 10, you’d need a mini-golf course or something out back. This place is pretty close.

* All reviews are the opinion of Melbourne Mum, and are not sponsored.

In Melbourne, we really are spoilt for choice when it comes to cafes. We had grand plans of having brunch at Monsieur Truffe on Father’s Day (as you do), until we rocked up at 10.30 and were informed that there wouldn’t be any tables until at least 12.30. They are so getting 0 points for kid-friendliness. I mean, who suggests waiting around for 2 hours with a toddler and a 6 year old? Yuh-ha, nup.

So we popped next door to El Mirage instead, having no idea this place even existed (even though it’s been here since late 2006). To say our expectations were exceeded is probably not saying much given that we were still feeling the sting of not getting a table next door and our expectations were low, but seriously, this place is GREAT.

The interior reminded me of a modernised 1970′s caravan, with cement floors, wood panelling starting at the walls and curving up onto the ceiling and funky retro green wallpaper defining the area between the walls and the couch seating. Loved that. The service was friendly, efficient and not at all snooty (but maybe we had a lucky day). Really loved that. The food, whilst not particularly adventurous, was tasty and compared to many other cafes/restaurants in the area, inexpensive.
There is no kid’s menu but the food is pretty standard with generous servings and would satisfy most fussy palates. We had the tex-mex beans on toast, pancakes with lemon curd and mascarpone and the ciabatta with salami, rocket and cheese and a side of home fries. I’m fussy about my home fries. So many places get them wrong, with undercooked or soggy spuds. Not this place. Beautifully crispy on the outside, soft in the middle. I’d go back solely for the home fries.

The coffee is good also but then, I’m a softie when it comes to places the serve the froth with a little heart-shaped flourish.

What was the bill?: Lunch for 4 + coffee for 2 (and babycinos/hot chocolates for the kiddies) – $50 (an absolute steal)

Where is it? El Mirage, 349 Lygon Street, Brunswick East (no website. Is that geek-speak for “we’re so cool we don’t have a website?”)

How kid-friendly is it?: 8/10. No kids menu, but pretty large selection, highchairs, cash only. I would call this place suitable for most kids, but on Father’s Day, with the high ceilings, the acoustics of the space made it seem a bit chaotic and loud – not good for kids who don’t respond so favourably to such an environment!

* All reviews are the opinion of Melbourne Mum, and are not sponsored.

Marmalade and Soul is handily located in an old pub on the corner of Queens Parade and Grant Street, in Fitzroy North and is a little slice of the country smack bang in the middle of the city. The atmosphere is truly wonderful. It is a cosy, retro feeling space, housing my favourite recycled chandelier in the whole world (below).

The coffee is single origin. The food is an interesting mix of traditional/modern (“tradern”), with French/British twists. I had a pulled pork ciabatta, with fennel roumelade and tarragon mustard. Really different flavours from the usual northern suburbs fare. And quite delicious. When Husband’s “CLT” came out, he was horrified to discover chicken pate was the centrepiece of the dish. I rolled my eyes and kinda went “well, duh, read the menu” and I got into eye-rolling trouble. Dommies aside, once he manually removed the pate, it was a cracker of a dish. Even better, no doubt, if you like pate.

I’ve also had the poached beaten egg and goats cheese sauce for breakfast here. I could actually swill a huge pot of the goats cheese alone it is SO GOOD. So good. The egg was perfectly cooked too, which is my litmus test for how excellent a place is for brekkie. They so passed this.

Melbourne Mum’s Design Wet Dream

The waiting staff are wonderful. On our first visit, the waitress commented on how well-behaved our kids were, so they either don’t see all that many kids (which I doubt – there always seem to be quite a few of the whippersnapper variety here) or the kids they do see are horrors. Or we have indoctrinated our kids well into the Way of the Cafe. Clearly the wait staff have not seen young Inky descend down the bannister of her Terrible Twos. Truly, no-one needs to see that.

There is no kids menu per se and the flavours are quite adventurous (if your kids like black pudding, then you’re totally set) but if you’re coming here for lunch, you can always find something for them from the breakfast menu (the hungry ferrets are fairly typical Melbourne kids and are fans of the all-day breakfast). I’m not sure if it’s still on the menu, but at one point Scout had a coddled egg topped with an egg warmer. Twee perhaps, but it was a hit with both the little folk and the Paton’s pattern poster-child in me screaming to get out.

The best thing about it’s kid-friendliness is that it is licensed. So much nicer to manage the hungry ferrets on a glass of pinot grigio.

How kid-friendly is it?: 6.5/10. Kids are always welcome, but they would have to be fairly adventurous to find something to eat from the lunch menu, although the breakfast menu is more accessible. Picky kids may go hungry. No highchairs.

* All reviews are the opinion of Melbourne Mum, and are not sponsored.

Espresso Alley Shopfront

Espresso Alley, on the corner of Balgonie Place and Separation Street in Northcote, is awkwardly placed. The closest parking is Northcote Plaza or behind the library so when they first opened, I wondered how successful they would be.

Although clearly not privy to their accounts, they look to be doing a roaring trade. The cafe itself is a converted brick terrace (anyone know whether it used to be a residence?) and typical of other cafes in the area, the interior theme is industrial/vintage and the food is modern, with a mediterranean flavour. I usually order the salami, provolone, olive tapenade and rocket panini for lunch – it’s a simple dish, but worth going back for. I have dabbled in other items, and whilst the menu is small, the flavours and textures of the dishes are all superb (sorry, channelling by wanky inner-Masterchef. Pardon me). There is no kids menu as such, but there are kid-friendly options such as the ham and havarti toasties and the fruit salad with honey and yogurt. I don’t actually think Inky would care if they had any food for her, as long as they keep the babycinos coming.

The coffee is beautiful. I often go in to have ONE coffee and end up ordering three, not because I need them (although I’m pretty sure I could justify it), but because the coffee really is magical. It is a very easy place to spend a few hours in, even with kids. No-one seems to bat an eyelid at the presence of little scampers, although my splatter-radar is set to high given it’s right next to a main road.

The service is pretty efficient and wavers between very friendly and a bit snooty, depending on who you get. Snootiness doesn’t bother me all that much, although I know of people who avoid places like the plague at the mere suggestion of snoot.

I think Espresso Alley is winning over the northern suburbs folks because they have followed the successful recipe of rustic, textural food, wonderful coffee, a laid-back, industrial vibe and adept service. Melbourne Mum and the hungry ferrets always feel welcome here and the cafe’s approach to food and coffee can’t be faulted.

How kid-friendly is it?: 8/10. Kids are welcome and there is plenty for them to eat in spite of no separate kids menu, there are highchairs but it’s BYO activities for kids (and BYO splatter radar for parents).

Eating at Enni is like sucking down a bowl of earthy chicken soup when you’re sick. It is warm, cosy, unpretentious and the proprietress, Natalie will always ask you how you’re going if you’re a regular (and even if you’re not).

Melbourne Mum and the hungry ferrets are regulars at this “everything is homemade” eatery at the north-end of High Street in Thornbury Village. I’ve recently been made redundant, so Natalie and I have lately pondered the state of the economy and the way big businesses are treating their staff, Nat having once worked at the same company that retrenched me.

I always feel welcome here, even if brandishing a snotty child or two. The clientele also don’t seem to mind a snotty child or two, in fact, are happy to be mercilessly flirted with. The children are happy to flirt, too.

There is a small kids breakfast menu, as well as a plethora of homemade foccacias, pies, fritters and the like all around the $6-$9 mark, so plenty to keep the troops happy for breakfast, brunch or lunch. A couple of breakfast/brunch faves are the Indian Scrambled Eggs with crispy bacon (the “Indian” spice mix is actually South African) French Toast with Maple Syrup, bananas and bacon and the Dukkah Eggs – soft poached eggs on toasted panini, with spinach, mushrooms, fetta and dukkah. Freakin’ brilliant. I crave the dukkah eggs sometimes, almost as much as I crave the Moroccan Chickpea Bake at the Moroccan Soup Bar (the latter being not so kid friendly, though).

The coffee is as good as you’d expect anywhere in Melbourne, and the selection of desserts/afternoon tea treats is amazing – lemon curd tart, dark chocolate mousse cake and macarons are regulars, all $5 or so (and gingerbread characters for the kids).

How kid-friendly is it? 7/10. There are high chairs but no toys or other “amusements” (BYO crayons/toys/iApparatus). It’s not a big space, so no room to run around, but the progeny are always welcome and they are catered for food-wise.